A Bond of Blood (A Shade of Vampire #9)(14)

But as it turned out, they didn’t return after four hours. Nor after twelve hours. Ben and I sat with Corrine and Eli in the Sanctuary waiting anxiously. But by the time the next day arrived and they still hadn’t shown up, each of us knew that they wouldn’t be returning.

“This time, I will go alone,” Eli said to Corrine, rubbing his head in his hands. “I’ll take the submarine. And since you can’t come with me, I will need one witch in case there are any spells to break through. How likely it is that one witch will be able to do it by herself, I don’t know. But we’ve no choice but to try.”

Corrine eyed him dubiously. “I think it would make more sense for me to go with you.”

Eli shook his head. “No. You’re the most powerful witch on the island right now. We need to leave at least that safety in place. As it is, we’ve lost our strongest forces. Without that, we’re vulnerable.”

When she opened her mouth to argue, Eli bulldozed over her. “Corrine, you can’t let your longing to see Ibrahim again blind you about this.”

She nodded and swallowed back her arguments.

“And if something happens to the two of you too?” I asked.

“Then it happens,” Eli said grimly. “But we’ll be as careful as can be. The second we suspect we’re in danger, we won’t wait around. There are only two of us to worry about so we’ll be more nimble. I suggest Adelle comes with me.”

“If you’re going with her,” Corrine said, “why do you even need the submarine? Won’t it be more likely to attract attention?”

“I need something to call base. Just in case—God forbid—something happens to Adelle, and I need to retreat.”

“I’m coming with you,” Ben interrupted. “It’s driving me mad just sitting here not knowing. Even if I end up in whatever fate they’re in right now, at least it will be less torturous than sitting here in the dark.”

“Out of the question!” Corrine seethed. “If there’s one thing I’m going to make sure of, it’s that you two keep your asses right here.” Her eyes burned as she looked at us. “You need your heads examined if you think I’m going to release you again after what you did.”

I already knew that there was no point arguing with the witch. I could sense Corrine’s moods well. I could tell when there was some leeway, but now, she was immobile as a mountain.

“Corrine,” Eli said. “If I’m going to do this, it needs to be now. Can you go and get Adelle? You’ll be quicker retrieving her than I will. In the meantime, I’ll begin making preparations.”

Corrine nodded and, still glaring at the two of us, vanished from the room.

My eyes followed Eli as he too left the room.

Ben was still fuming. I touched his shoulder and said, “I’m going to see Griffin. I need to take my mind off of all of this or I’m going to go insane.”

Ben grunted. I walked out of the room, and, once I was in the corridor, I began sprinting.

There was no time to lose.

I had no idea how long it would take Eli to make preparations, but I had to get to that submarine before he did.

Chapter 14: Rose

My heart hammering in my chest, I raced along the jetty, shooting back glances every so often to check nobody had followed me. I approached one of the two remaining submarines in the Port and, reaching out onto its roof, pulled myself up and unbolted the hatch.

It was the smaller, faster vessel, and I was positive that Eli would choose this over the other one.

I half expected Eli to be already seated in it making preparations, but breathed out a sigh of relief to see that he was not. I pulled the hatch shut above me and scrambled down the ladder. I rushed down to the lower level of the deck and hurled myself into the small storage cabin directly beneath the control room. I cast my eyes around for anywhere to hide. I rummaged around, throwing about old rope, tarpaulin, blankets, until I found what I was looking for: a metal chest. Large enough to fit a man. I pulled the lid open. It was filled with weapons: mostly wooden stakes, daggers and UV ray guns.

I looked at the weapons, then cast my eyes about the room again. Grabbing a blanket, I emptied the chest of all the dangerous objects and bundled them up in the fabric. I tucked them into a corner of the room, hoping that there were other weapons upstairs so that Eli wouldn’t need to come down here looking for them.

Then I curled up in the metal box and pulled the lid down over me. The metal seemed thin, but I hoped it was just thick enough for Eli to not be able to smell my blood. I also hoped there was enough oxygen to last me the journey, because as soon as either of them noticed I was there, I would be booted off, back to The Shade. I couldn’t afford to come out until they were both off the sub at our destination.

I waited with bated breath until I felt the submarine begin to move, slowly at first, and then it lurched forward. I suppressed a groan as the back of my head banged against the metal wall. I breathed in deeply, trying to calm my nerves.

You made it. We’re moving now. They haven’t found you.

Now that the vessel was moving and the pounding in my chest was beginning to subside, the implications of my actions were beginning to dawn on me. I hadn’t had time to consider how worried my brother and Corrine would be to discover that I had disappeared yet again. It was the last thing they needed—they had both already lost everyone else dear to them. I might be the straw to break the camel’s back.